A beloved member of the Hamilton Parish community, who was dear to Bailey’s Bay Cricket Club, brought a memorable charm to her work at the Little Venice restaurant in Hamilton.

Millicent Hill was a regular at Sea Breeze Oval and a vocal presence at matches.

Stephen Outerbridge, the club president, said the establishment planned to host the funeral service for “Ma Hill”, calling her “an avid supporter”.

Both her sons, Ricky and Corey, flourished as dual internationals in football and cricket, which Mr Outerbridge said “comes from their lineage”.

He said: “Growing up, I don’t remember until recently that she ever missed a game. Anybody that’s played for Bay, you got that Ma Hill kiss.”

Mr Outerbridge recalled her encyclopaedic knowledge of sport and how when he spoke with Mrs Hill after the recent loss of her daughter, Carla, “she brought up moments that I had forgotten in my cricket career”.

“I was sure I was a decent historian. She could tell me every moment I played in,” he said.

“It is a sad day for us. I give my sincere condolences to her family. For the Bailey’s Bay community, it’s another tough one to take.”

Maxwell Burgess, a former United Bermuda Party government minister, was good friends with Mrs Hill and her husband, Ralph.

“I served as her representative for a number of years but that had nothing to do with our friendship. I go as far back as coaching her son, Corey, in junior soccer,” he said.

“Millicent was involved in the sports lives of Ricky and Corey more than any parent. She took their progress in sport very seriously and was prepared to get them to do whatever it took to be successful.”

The family became synonymous with Bailey’s Bay Cricket Club.

“Millie was a warm-hearted person and, more than anything else, she was frank,” Mr Burgess said. “She believed that, as your friend, she owed it to you to call it as she saw it.

“In that respect she was a confidante. I could trust her to tell me the lay of the land. She was a perfect fit for Ralph and they enjoyed each other all those years.”

Mr Burgess said Mrs Hill suffered “a bitter blow and misfortune no parent should have, with the death of her daughter, Carla”, a former customs officer who passed away in August.

“I get it that the time will come for all of us. But I cannot help but think, ‘If only I got even a couple more days’.”

He added: “I and my family mourn, and Hamilton Parish mourns collectively.”

Wayne Furbert, the Progressive Labour Party MP for Mrs Hill’s home turf on Radnor Road, said she was “very, very well known in Hamilton Parish, particularly the Bailey’s Bay community”.

“She was a very lovely lady. I am sure the people of Hamilton Parish wish her family the greatest condolences, as do I.”

Derrick Burgess, the PLP MP for Hamilton East, called her “a matriarch” as well as a diehard cricket fan who could be found at “every County Cup and Cup Match”.

“You knew she would be there draped in her red and white,” he added.

“She always followed her boys, Ricky and Corey. Losing two in the same family is really a blow to Hamilton Parish — two strong, well-known figures in the community. My condolences to her husband, sons and the rest of the family.”

Dale Butler, a former PLP government minister and formerly of MEF Group, which runs the Little Venice restaurant, recalled Mrs Hill as an old-school restaurant worker who epitomised Bermudian friendliness.

“That was her the minute you walked in,” Mr Butler said.

“She was warm, motherly, with a sense of humour, and gave outstanding service — she was the Bermuda that people talk about.

“She perpetuated our international reputation for being personable, down-to-earth and easygoing.

“Millicent Hunt was part of the Little Venice family. Tourists would ask for her after she retired. She was a real gem.”

• Millicent May Faybelle Hill, a pillar of the Hamilton Parish community, was born on July 24, 1938. She died in November 2023, aged 85